BMW 745i
The best computer you'll ever drive |
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By Richard J. Newman
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NITS:The high headrests in both front and back reduce visibility when you're backing up. The spring-loaded cupholders need some weight training; when I finished a soda and put the empty bottle down, it popped out of the cup holder as if it had been rejected.
G-FORCES: You will always have enough power in this car, no matter the load, the incline, or the competition. Cornering is so firm and steady it seems to be controlled by gyroscopes.
GIZMOLOGY: The cabin feels cluttered with buttons, even with the iDrive system that is supposed to centralize numerous functions. Between steering steering-wheel controls, dashboard buttons, and iDrive, there are several ways to control the radio and other systems, which gives the driver choices--but too many choices. Also, things go on that aren't entirely explainable; the rear headrests, for instance, buzzed up and down occasionally for no apparent reason.
KID MARKS: There's plenty of space in the back seat and room for two strollers, plus lots of other gear, in the trunk. Door handles are easy for kids to use, although the doors are very heavy. Side air bags are options for the rear seat, but BMW advises keeping them deactivated if a child is likely to sit next to them.
HOT OR NOT? Hot. The round, sloping design looks fun and serious at the same time, although BMW fanatics find it somewhat pedestrian.
ENVIROMETER: Envirometer: Two stars out of five on the EPA's "green vehicle" ratings scale. Details at http://www.epa.gov/autoemissions/
E-BMW-745i-02.htm
CRASH COURSE: Not crash tested by the government or by private safety agencies.
PRICE POINTS: Base price is $68,495. Price as tested: $74,395. Prices include delivery fees.
MORE INFO: http://www.bmwusa.com/welcome.cfm?page=&bottom=0
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Model year tested: 2002
Turning on the 745i is a defining experience–for the driver, not the car. BMW has broken with decades of automotive tradition by replacing the key with a computerized fob you pop into a slot in the dashboard. Then, instead of turning a device that mechanically triggers the ignition, you put a precautionary foot on the brake and push a button that electronically turns the car on. It's a simple process that takes about five minutes to get used to, yet it has automotive purists gnashing their teeth. It's different. It's newfangled. It's not what we're used to.
If you can't get over the electronic ignition, you'll never be comfortable in this car, which is the Hal of automobiles. But the 745i incorporates several technological advances that are going to work their way down the automotive food chain sooner or later. Some drivers will resist to the bitter end, like people who still insist on using typewriters. But much of the technology on the car is easy to adapt to, once you accept the new paradigm. Controls for the transmission, the parking brake, and other functions are electric or electronic, instead of mechanical, which means there's no familiar "thunk" when you put the car in gear or engage the parking brake. There's no throttle cable connected to the gas pedal, which merely transmits an electronic signal to a motor that increases the valve openings and produces greater acceleration. Theoretically, that frees engineers to do away with the gas pedal and put the accelerator on the dashboard, or on a steering wheel stalk, or anyplace else.
But so what? If anybody doubts that the 745i sacrifices driving performance in its pursuit of electronica, a trip around the block will persuade them otherwise. An "active roll stabilization" system uses sensors, hydraulics, and chassis roll bars to produce remarkable cornering. On simple turns I routinely oversteered, not expecting such tight turning from a large car. There were audible "wows" in the cabin, and they didn't come from Hal. The 325-horsepower V-8 produces power that is deep and never lacking at any engine speed. And needless to say, for $70,000 you get comforts that would get the infirm out of bed. The 14-point power seats are nearly as soothing as a massage, and there are numerous accoutrements that filter sunlight, remove pollutants from the air, and heat the rear seats and the steering wheel.
It's worth asking who needs such pampering, but the real overkill in the 745i is the "iDrive" system that centers controls for the radio, the climate system, the dockable cell phone, and several other functions in a computerized console in the center of the dashboard. IDrive goes a step further than most other command centers on luxury cars, which are largely controlled by buttons near the screen. For the 745i, BMW decided to invent a mouse-like device mounted near the center armrest, which requires the driver to page through menus and submenus to get to functions that ought to be handled by the push of a couple buttons. The concept is a good one–centralize the car's myriad features in one place–but it takes the driver's eyes off the road too much. I gained familiarity with iDrive during the week I drove the 745i, but I never got comfortable with it. Call me old-fashioned, but I'd rather concentrate on the marvelous road performance of a car like this.
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